Man gets life in prison for fatal attack on unhoused man in downtown Eugene

A 39-year-old Eugene man was sentenced to life in prison Tuesday, July 14, after pleading guilty to the fatal downtown attack of an unhoused man who, according to the victim’s family, was lured into thinking the two were friends.

Joshua Margarito Saldivar will be required to spend a minimum of 25 years in prison after pleading guilty in Lane County Circuit Court to second-degree murder. 

He previously was committed in April to Oregon State Hospital following a psychological examination. About 75 days into his commitment, a report by hospital staff found Saldivar fit to proceed, and a judge’s June 16 order ended a pause on the case.

Douglas Eugene Beinhauer, 42, died 10 days after the Dec. 2, 2025, fatal attack, which was captured on downtown surveillance cameras that Beinhauer’s family, in a statement, called the “stuff of nightmares.”

They described Beinhauer as not perfect, but called his death shocking as Saldivar acted “without any regard for human life, under the false flag of friendship.”

Deputy District Attorney Matthew Wojcik said in court Tuesday the attack took place downtown in the area of Oak Alley. Beinhauer sustained “multiple sharp-edged weapon” injuries to his neck and hands, as well as “multiple blunt-force trauma injuries” to his head, Wojcik said.

“Security camera video showed [Saldivar] attempting to clean up or conceal the crime scene, sort of between assaults,” Wojcik said. 

The attack at one point stopped, but Saldivar returned to Beinhauer, Wojcik said. As Beinhauer was “attempting to crawl away,” Saldivar “reengaged him and continued assaulting him.”

Wojcik said at one point a bystander attempted to “verbally” intervene, and that security camera videos also showed Saldivar “fleeing from the scene” and changing clothing. The images showed a “clear image of his face and identifiable tattoos,” Wojcik said.

On Dec. 5, Saldivar entered an attached garage to take a bicycle, with police arresting him after a “very brief period where he was eluding officers,” Wojcik said. As part of plea negotiations, charges of first-degree burglary and second-degree theft were dismissed.

Wojcik noted that Saldivar has a lengthy criminal history, “mostly outside the state of Oregon.” A sentencing memo filed in the case listed convictions for domestic-violence assault, assault causing bodily injury, and second-degree robbery, among other crimes.

Beinhauer’s father, John, and other family members listened remotely during the court hearing, and Wojcik read aloud their statement.

Beinhauer had his “hands ripped to the bone,” and his “scalp ripped from his skull,” among other injuries, family said in the statement. 

The family’s statement described the attack as starting when Beinhauer was sleeping and “felt safe.”

“His killer befriended Doug, only to plan and execute his murder,” the family said in the statement. “Why did he do this? Why?”

“He reminds us no place is safe,” they said, asking for the “longest, toughest sentence possible.”

Michael Hajarizadeh, a defense attorney, told the court that he would follow Saldivar’s wishes and not speak about him, but said, “I don’t think Mr. Saldivar at the date of the incident is the same one I was meeting with for many of the days [we met].”

Lane County Circuit Judge Debra Velure asked Saldivar if he had anything to say to the court.

“Yeah, Douglas wasn’t laying down to sleep, no,” Saldivar said.

Velure then remarked how there was a lengthy gap between previous convictions and the December attack.

“I was in prison for 10 years, so it all kind of stopped,” Saldivar said.

Velure asked if Saldivar had “gained any insight” into his mental illness after his stay at Oregon State Hospital.

“Yeah,” Saldivar said. But he declined to explain further.

“You’re taking accountability, that’s what’s happening here today,” Velure said. Referencing the family’s statement, “we’re not going to get those answers,” she added.